1. Field of the Invention
The apparatus of the present, invention relates to debarking apparatus. More particularly, the present invention relates to an improved debarking head assembly which incorporates a depth controlled bearing assembly having adjustable shoes which are mountable on existing debarking apparatuses and would allow a precise depth of cut adjustment for controlling the amount of wood or bark removed from a log during the debarking process.
2. General Background of the Invention
In the present state of the art, in the initial stages of the production of finished wood, the trees which are felled must be stripped of the bark, preferably at the site of the logging operation. The trees are then transported to processing at a sawmill. In the process for stripping the bark from a felled tree, the bark is initially removed through what is termed a debarking process which may commonly occur at a sawmill. A typical debarking apparatus would include a rotating debarker head which is positioned above the log while the log is rotated under the debarker apparatus. The debarker head rotates at an extremely high speed, and through a plurality of teeth or cutting knives, the knives make contact with the log as it is slowly rotated adjacent the debarking head, and the bark is literally stripped from the log through cutting and chipping. Usually there is a specific arrangement of the cutting knife which may affect how effective the debarking process is. However, it is often difficult in the present state of the art to control the precise depth at which the cutting knives will cut into the tree thus resulting, often times, in a significant loss of valuable wood rather than only a loss of the bark around the tree trunk.
Of course, the debarker head with the knives or cutting blades are usually rotated around a central shaft, with the shaft being positioned on a pair of end mounting bearings which are normally called pillow block bearings which would normally absorb the shock that would result from the blades making contact with the bark during operation, but would not have the ability to measure the depth of the cut. Therefore, there is a significant need in the industry for precisely controlling the depth of the cut that the blades on a debarker apparatus make into the bark of a tree trunk, so as to avoid loss of valuable wood during the process, without the need of additional other devices such as pivoted arms, rollers, or hydraulic cylinders moved in an effort to raise the debarker head, which are found to be ineffective. Reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 5,168,907 which discloses a debarker apparatus, manufactured by Tyler Tool Co.